Students’ Attitudes Toward STEM: Development of an Instrument for High School STEM-Based Programs

The intent of this study was to develop an instrument to measure the current level of attitude that students’ exhibit toward STEM education. The Concerns-Based Adoption Model, Taxonomy of Education Objectives – Handbook II, and other pertinent instruments were utilized as sources of inspiration for the instrument. The selected items were submitted to a panel of experts representative of STEM education. Initial pilot testing refined the instrument through principal components analysis and Cronbach’s alpha coefficients. The identified principal components aligned well with reviewed instruments. Reliability coefficients were strong for each of the principal components.

Results of the combined analyses led to revisions of the instrument prior to a larger comparative study – a known-group comparison. A self-identified STEM-based high school program and a conventional college-preparatory program were compared. Principal components analysis and Cronbach’s alpha procedures were again applied to the data collected. The two samples were compared using three distinct independent variables – educational location, grade level, and gender. Each independent variable was analyzed for each principal component.

MANOVA procedures were utilized. Male students indicated a statistically significant more positive attitude toward STEM when compared to the female students for the independent variable of gender. The statistical significance was demonstrated specifically for the content areas of technology and engineering. The results of the data analysis supported the proposed hypothesis. Based upon extensive review of the varied data analysis procedures implemented, the students’ attitudes towards the STEM instrument demonstrated positive examples of validity and reliability.